Bitter Rain
by Kaira-chan
Summary: Yeah...so basicailly its raining, and the author is horrible at summerys...
1. Chappy 1

Naruto walked down the street, his head hanging. 

The rain was falling heavily, wetting his hair, making it fall into his eyes. He told himself he should go home, but he couldn't bring himself too it. 

His empty home was worse with the rain. The rain seemed to bring out the silence... Naruto dug his hands into his pockets deeper. 

He somehow brought his head up too look at the sky. He didn't know how he did it, his head was so heavy. Or maybe that was his heart. He didn't know or care. All he knew is that he wanted to fall to his knees right then and there, and stay there. To not move. To stay there forever, and not have to put up with this pain anymore. 

Why did people hate him? He asked himself. Didn't they know that he wasn't the fox. That he was Naruto, that the fox was something completely different, that resided deep within him. 

Didn't they know they had nothing to fear. That he was his own person. Didn't they know how much they were hurting Naruto?

"Oi, dobe, what are you doing outside in this weather?" He heard someone say. 

He looked around, before his eyes fell on Sasuke. "I'm walking, what does it look like?" Naruto snapped. 

"It _looks _like your going to get yourself sick, but I could be wrong," Sasuke said back, taking it upon himself to walk beside Naruto, who had begun walking again. 

"Who cares if I get sick?" Naruto asked sharply. 

Sasuke fell quiet, and turned the corner as Naruto did. "This isn't the way to your house you know, dobe," Sasuke said. 

"Yeah, I know," Naruto said. 

"Then why are you going this way?"

"Because I feel like it, OK?" Naruto snapped back. 

"Listen, you're headed towards my house. Why don't you stay their, dry off, and leave when it stops raining?" Sasuke offered, coldly.

Naruto fell quiet. "Why?" He asked quietly. 

"What do you mean, why?" Sasuke asked back. 

"Why? Why do you want me to come over? Is this some sort of trick?" Naruto asked. 

"No...this isn't some sort of trick?" Sasuke said, stunned. "You're going to get sick if you stay out in this weather..."

"Why do you care?" When Sasuke didn't answer, Naruto continued. "Why do you care if I get sick? No one else does? They'd probably be thrilled."

Sasuke thought. "Because if you get sick, then we don't have a three man team anymore, until you get better, and without a three man team, we can't do a lot of missions. And without a lot of missions, I can't get any better. Mind you, we'd probably be better off without you..." Sasuke said. 

"Oh," Naruto said simply, his voice sounding a little off.

Sasuke tried to look at Naruto, but his head was to far down. "Here's my house. Come on," He said. 

Naruto followed as Sasuke walked up the stairs to his house. He put the key in the lock, and opened the door, closing it after Naruto entered.

Naruto scanned the house. It was pretty empty, with just some bare furniture. Only the necessities.

"Want anything? Hot chocolate, tea, soup?" Sasuke asked. 

Naruto was about to decline, when he shivered. Entering Sasuke's reletivly warm house, he realised how cold he was.

"Hot chocolate would be nice," He said, hugging himself. 

Sasuke went to the kitchen, leaving the shivering Naruto standing in the doorway. 

"Yo, dobe, you can go sit down if you want," Sasuke's voice called from the kitchen. 

Naruto took a hesitant step forward, and then stopped. Sasuke appeared from the kitchen. 

"So, are you going to sit, or stand there soaking my floor?" Sasuke asked. 

"I'm sorry, it's just..." Naruto stopped. 

"Yes?" Sasuke asked. 

"No one's ever invited me over to their house before..." He said quietly, his voice nearly a whisper. 

Sasuke stared at Naruto. "Are you serious?" He asked, shocked. 

Naruto nodded. "Well, come on. The living room is this way. Just sit and wait for me," Sasuke said, leading Naruto into his living room. Naruto sat on the couch tentatively, as if it was going to bite him or something. 

"OK, I'll be back, I need to finish making the hot chocolate," Sasuke said, leaving the room. 

Naruto sat on the couch, tensely, unsure of what to do. Within a few minutes, Sasuke was standing in front of him. "Here," He said, handing Naruto a coffee cup filled with hot chocolate. Naruto accepted it, feeling the warmth run through his hands, though he was still shivering. 

Sasuke seemed to see this, and left. As Naruto lifted the cup to his lips, he felt something wrap around him. 

He blinked and looked around him, to see Sasuke draping a blanket around his shoulders. "Thank you Sasuke," Naruto said, grabbing the blanket with one hand and wrapping it around himself. 

"So, why were you wandering around by yourself in the middle of the night in the rain?" Sasuke asked. 

"I could ask you the same thing..." Naruto said, turning to Sasuke. 

"Me? I was going to the store. I had to get something," Sasuke said.

"For what?" Naruto asked innocently. 

"Flowers..." Sasuke said quietly. 

"Flowers? For what?" Naruto asked. 

Sasuke's usually cold face turned sad. "Tomorrow is the four year anniversary of my parents death..." He said, his voice low, yet Naruto could still hear it.

"Oh...I'm sorry," He said, quietly. 

"Well, now that we're sharing, why were you wandering around late at night in the rain?" Sasuke said, regaining his composure. 

"No reason..." Naruto said.

"...Really? OK then, where were you looking so depressed then when I saw you walking all alone late at night in the rain, with no intention to go home," Sasuke said. 

Naruto looked at Sasuke. He did just share with Naruto about his parents but...

_"You demon..."_

Naruto sighed, then breathed in. "Sakura-chan was walking home..."

  


_ Sakura was walking home, her arms full of bags and other stuff, and she was having trouble walking. _

_ "Hey, Sakura-chan. Need some help?" Naruto asked, smiling widely. Sakura looked over her boxes. Or at least tried too. She ended up dropping a few of them, which Naruto caught before they hit the ground. _

_ "OK Naruto. You can help me carry them home," Sakura sighed. Naruto grinned and grabbed a bunch of the boxes. _

_ "So, what are all these for?" He asked, as he and she walked towards her house. _

_ "My parents are holding a party. Hey, maybe you could come," She said. "I was thinking of asking Sasuke-kun too," She said. Naruto grinned widely, ignoreing the part about Sasuke. _

_ "Really? You want me to come?" He asked, like a little child. _

_ "Yeah, it would be fun," She smiled._

_ "Thank you Sakura-chan!" He exclaimed. _

_ "Hey! You!" A voice called up. Naruto and Sakura looked towards the source. "Hello daddy!" Sakura said. _

_ He ignored her. "You! Get away from my daughter you demon-child!"_

_Naruto nearly dropped the boxes he was carrying. "Excuse me?" He asked. _

_ "You heard me! Get away from my daughter!" _

_ "Daddy! Don't be mean," Sakura said. "Can Naruto come to the party?"_

_ "Absolutly not! Get it away from my property! And make it stop touching my things!" Saukra's dad yelled. _

_ Sakura looked at Naruto. "Sorry," She mouthed._

_ He sighed. "It's OK," He said, putting the boxes down with care. Then he walked away. _

Sasuke looked at him. "Wow, that was harsh..." He said. 

Naruto sighed. "It's OK, I'm used to it..." He said. 

Sasuke looked at him. He was serious. 

Naruto leaned over, resting his head on the back of the couch. "Thank you for inviting me over Saskue..." He said closing his eyes. "I'm so...warm..." He said.

Sasuke sat their for a while, until he knew that Naruto was asleep. He looked outside. "Looks like it's going to be raining all night..." He sighed heavily. He pushed Naruto's head down, and brought his legs up, so he was laying on the couch, then put the blanket over him carefully. 

"G'night dobe..." He said, before retiring to his own bedroom. 

  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Take that any way you want, whether it be shonen ai, or not. Hehe ^-^;; Please Read and Review. Unless you really want it too, it won't be continued. Oh yeah, I don't own Naruto T-T


	2. Chappy 2

Kaira-chan: Due to popular demand...

Dark Kaira: Surprise surprise -.-;

Kaira-chan: I'm continuing this fic. 

Naruto: Hurrah! More me!

Kaira-chan: And I'm seriously considering making it Shonen-ai/yaoi... I need more time to decide tho =P

Yami Kaira: Yeah...

Naruto: Kaira-chan does not own Naruto in any way, shape or form, unless you count the manga's ^-^

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  


Naruto opened his eyes, and looked around. 

Sunlight floated through the windows, turning the airborn dust into serene sparkles. 

He looked around panicked. He was laying on a couch, with a dark, blue fleece blanket laying on top of him. 

Resting neatly on the floor under a window, were books on fighting, chakara control, and justu's. 

There were polished shiruken neatly in a row on a near-by coffee table. 

Where the hell was he? This sure as hell wasn't his house. 

He thought about last night, sitting up. He had be wandering around the village, lost, or wanting to be lost. 

Then Sasuke, the jerk, showed up and invited him over, though the reason escaped Naruto. 

So, he must still be in Sasuke's house. 

He stood up and realised his cloths were still wet. 

Of course. He hadn't given them time to dry off. 

He took off his jacket, and his pants, stripping down to his shorts. They might be wet too, but there was no way he was going to undress more then that in Sasuke's house. He looked around and when he found Sasuke's bathroom, he hung his cloths over the bath. He looked in the mirror. 

He looked tired. Bags were beginning to form under his eyes, and his eyes were bloodshot. 

He sighed. The looked outside. It was now just spitting out, despite the sun. Sasuke _did _say he could stay until the rain stopped. And it didn't look like it was going to stop any time soon. He sighed and flopped down on the couch. How come Sasuke didn't have a TV?

He realized he was hungry, so he walked into the kitchen. He stopped himself before he began to dig through his fridge and cupboards. 

This was his first time in Sasuke's house, and the first time anyone was kind enough to invite him over. Did he really want to show such disrespect by snooping though his cupboards for food and such?

He left the kitchen, and decided to wake Sasuke, see if he would make him something, or at the very least, that he could make his own food. 

Sasuke's door was open a crack, so Naruto pushed it open silently. He snuck into Sasuke's room silently. 

Sasuke's back was turned to Naruto, as Naruto crept through his room. As Naruto neared closer, though, he realized Sasuke wasn't asleep. 

He inched closer. "Sasuke?" He said, as quietly as possible. 

Sasuke jumped two feet in the air, and spun around, wiping his eyes quickly. 

"Sasuke... where you crying just now?" Naruto asked the boy. 

"N - No," Sasuke said quickly, but his high voice revealed that he was. 

"What's the matter?" Naruto asked, taking a step closer. 

"Nothing!" Sasuke snapped, standing up, his voice was still high though, and Naruto was reminded of a little kid who had just been hurt. 

Naruto thought back to last night. _"Tomorrow's the four year anniversary of my parents death..."_

"Oh... I'm sorry Sasuke..." Naruto said quietly. 

Sasuke stared at him, and it was an unconfortable silence for a while. "Oi, dobe. Where are your cloths?" Sasuke asked, breaking the silence. 

Naruto looked at himself, and laughed nervously. "Heheh... they're a little wet," He chuckled. 

Sasuke allowed a faint smile to cross his lips when he thought Naruto had his eyes closed. 

"Oi, Sasuke, what's so funny?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke was taken aback. It was so hard to tell when Naruto had his eyes closed. "Nothing," Sasuke snapped. "What do you want anyway?" He asked. 

"I was wondering if I could have something to eat?" Naruto asked. 

"Go ahead, make yourself whatever," Sasuke said. 

Naruto smiled his not-so-classy fox grin and bolted out of his room. 

He leaned against the wall after closing the door behind him. "Sasuke..." He sighed. 

  


Sasuke sat on his bed. Great. Naruto had seen him cry. Now he'd never live it down. He could imagine it now. "At least I don't cry!" "You'll never see me cry!" "Hey, Sakura-chan! Did you know Sasuke cried?"

Sasuke sighed and lay back on his bed. Out of all the people, why did that loud mouth Naruto have to see him cry?

  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kaira-chan: So, who thinks I should make this Shonen-ai/yaoi?

Dark Kaira: I do! I do!

Naruto: ...Sasuke cried? Excellent... *Twiddles fingers like Mr. Burns*

Kaira-chan: Naruto-sama, don't be mean to ickel Sasuke-kun.

Naruto: Fine fine, please review =^-^=

  


~~~~~~~REVIEW REPLIES~~~~~~~

  


Bishihuggler:

Thank you ^-^ Although, due to popular demand, its no longer a one shot =P Oh! I want a plushie =P ^-^

  


CrazyAce:

Yes, here is more ^_^ And thank you ^-^

  


wow:

Lol, another person asking me to update ^_^ Yes, people are cruel *Glares at people who are mean to Naruto, and huggles him*

  


Keitorin: 

Yay ^-^ Another person who likes it ^-^... tones? **Is moronic** What does tones mean?

  


JadeTiger:

Another chapter, or another story? ^-^ I'm glad you like it

  


ChibiDragon:

Lol, I take it you don't like Shonen-ai? ^-^ Oh well. Mingion?? **Is stupid* What's that?

  


Chryseis:

Yay! I'm glad you luv it ^_^ I'm continuing, happy? ^-^ yay!

  


:D:

Lol, yes, poor poor Naruto *Huggles him*

  


Kamiya Kaoru:

Lol, too bad you can't huh? Yeah, when I'm watching Naruto, I sometimes just want to jump through the screen, and glomp him to death ^-^ Don't you hate it that you cant tho .

  


Jiro:

Lol, yes, I'll continue ^_^ Yay! Shonen-ai ^-^ Cant get enough of it =P

  


ChibiDragon:

Actually, it wasn't that bad O_o My dad caught me on the computer without his permission, and lifted the grounding O_O Odd, huh? Lol, neways, 2 months O_o That's harsh!! . That would suck a lot. Luckily for me, my parents have a bad memory, and always forget they grounded me (As long as I don't complain)

  


xxSilverWingsxx:

Never grounded O_O Wow... lucky you!! Lol, am I back soon enough??

  


Dun Worry:

I won't ^-^ lol. That sux harshly . Luckily, I didn't let my parents standards of me get to high, so I get paid if I get above 80% ^-^;; hehe, it would suck to be grounded tho . On my last report card, I have three 79%... would you be grounded for that too?? . That would suck, harshly. 


	3. Chappy 3

Kaira-chan: I have decided to make this Shonen-Ai

Dark Kaira: So if you don't like it, don't read... 

Kaira-chan: It's not the strong yet anyways...

Dark Kaira: What do you mean 'yet'?

Kaira-chan: Oh yeah O_o... I'm not sure if I'm going to continue this..../

Naruto: ^-^;; Yeah, you DO have 20 other fics going on...

Kaira-chan: yep yep ^_^ But if you, the reviewers want more, then more you shall have. 

Naruto: Kaira-chan doesn't own Naurto. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[1] - Naruto's other, less known favorite food. Basically its sweet red bean soup, with rice cakes. 

[2] - A phrase said before one begins to eat. It's a sort of prayer I suppose. It means "I begin to eat," but literally it means "Thank you for the meal."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  


Naruto searched through Sasuke's cupboards. He was half tempted to ask Sasuke where he kept all his instant Ramen, but knew that he really shouldn't. 

After searching through the cupboards a little more, he finally came to the conclusion Sasuke _didn't _have any instant Ramen. It amazed him how someone could live without any in their house. Actually, Sasuke mostly had Tomato's, and stuff to make rice balls out of. 

Naruto opened a cupboard, and pulled out some sweet red beans. He might as well make some Oshiruko. [1]

As he was making the soup, he accidentally spilt some on his chest. He cursed as the hot soup felt like it was eating through his skin. Quickly he grabbed a dish rag, and wiped it off of him. 

He paused as he came to the spiral seal that was laying on his stomach, in clear view. He cursed loudly. No doubt Sasuke had seen it. 

He jumped over the counter that was in the middle of the kitchen, and quickly ran to the bathroom, where he threw on his grey muscle shirt, then ran back before his soup began to burn. 

Within a matter of minutes, his Oshiruko was finished, and he fished out one of Sasuke's scarce bowls, and poured it in. 

As he sat down to eat, Sasuke finally emerged from his room. "Something smells good, what is it?" He asked. 

"Oshiruko," Naruto answered, then gestured to the stove. "Help yourself."

Sasuke nodded, and grabbed another bowl, then sat across from Naruto. "I didn't think you could cook," Sasuke mumbled, looking at the Oshiruko somewhat suspiciously. 

"Yes Sasuke. I've lived alone for 13 years, and I have yet to learn to cook," Naruto answered sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Itadakimasu," he said, before taking a bite. 

"Itadakimasu," Sasuke also said, then began eating. His eyes widened as he took a bite. "Wow, this is really good," he said, and then took another bite. 

Naruto blushed slightly. "Thanks," he mumbled. 

Sasuke looked out the window. "It's stopped raining," he said, then ate another spoonful of the Oshiruko. 

Naruto held the bowl to his lips and drank the rest of it, before also looking out the window. 

"I suppose I should go then," he said, standing up. "Goshisosamadeshita," he muttered before dropping his bowl in the sink, and walking to the bathroom. 

Sasuke continued eating, while Naruto put back on his clothes. Finally Naruto emerged from the bathroom. 

"Thank you for having me over Sasuke," he said. He reached out for the door handle, and clasped it in his hand, beginning to turn it. 

"Wait!" Sasuke exclaimed. Naruto froze, but didn't face Sasuke. 

"Yeah?" He asked. 

"Um - Are your clothes dry yet?" He asked. Naruto held out his arms, and looked at them. "Not really..." Naruto said. 

"Let them dry off," Sasuke said. When Naruto looked at him questionally, Sasuke added. "Besides, it hasn't stopped raining yet."

Naruto looked in surprise, as fresh tears welled up in Sasuke's eyes. He nodded, before walking over to Sasuke, and silently hugged him. 

  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kaira-chan: So... what do you think??!!!

Dark Kaira:... I suppose you decided to turn it Shonen-ai?

Kaira-chan: Yep yep ^-^ *Nods* And I'm dreadfully sorry for OOCness...ness...

Dark Kaira: =.=

Naruto: Do you think she should continue?? 

Kaira-chan: ?? Yeah, do you?

Dark Kaira: Yeah? Huh huh?

Kaira-chan: O_o... .wow...

Dark Kaira: What?

Kaira-chan: Nothing ^-^;;

Naruto: Please Read and Review!

~~~~~~~~~~REVIEW REPLIES~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  


Inuyasha's Kitty:

Ok ^-^ There's alittle bit of Shonen-ai *Points* happy?

  


XxSilverWingsxx:

Lol ^-^ And there's an itty-bit of SasuNaru...happy?? ^-^

  


Chibi Dragon:

Ahhhh ^_^ Okz ^-^ I was confuzzled =P ^-^ I'm glad you think so ^___^ Yes, poor poor Sasuke-kun u.u

  


Baka-yarou:

Yay ^_^ I'm lovvled ^_^ meow ^___^;;;; 

  


IceHeart19:

yep yep *Points to chapter above* ^-^;; Hm... I don't think that my parents would've cared if I came home with all 50's on my report card...well...they would now. It would be the computers fault, nevermind the punk rock shows ever weekend and hanging with friends until 10 nearly every night, and the completely packed full Wednesdays, or the job...nope...somehow it would ALL be the computers fault... Yeah... I could've been grounded longer. ^-^ And I'm sorry for the short update last chapter...and meebe this chapter too...

  
  


SpacyRicochet:

Yeah... sorry about that ^-^;;; heheheh... 

  
  


evafreak:

yep yep ^_^ *Points above* Hope you liked it ^_^

  
  


Annonomous:

Yes...yes he should . Stupid Sakura's dad =P. And I'm sorry ^-^;;

  


:D:

Yes...understand. Feel Sasuke's pain!!!!! lol ^-^ Alittle over-dramatisised moment there ^-^;;;

  


Chryseis:

I'm glad you like it ^___^;;;


	4. Chappy 4

Kaira-chan: I hate you all...

Dark Kaira: no you don't!!

Kaira-chan: .... You're right!! I love you all!!! 

Naruto: O_O;; mood swing much?

Kaira-chan: I hate you all for making me continue this...

Dark Kaira: No you don't!!!!

Kaira-chan: You're right... I would've continued it either way, because that ending would've just eaten away at me... eaten... and eaten... and gnawed... until I couldn't stand it any more...

Naruto: She's scaring me!! Kaira-chan doesn't own Naruto ((Thank God, we'd all be horribly confused...))

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

  
  


Sasuke didn't know how long he sat there in Naruto's arms. 

It could've been for hours, or it may, most likely, have been for only a few minutes. 

He had buried his face in the crook where Naruto's neck connecter with his shoulders. He found himself relaxing in Naruto's salty smell, before Naruto realized exactly what was happening. He pulled away quickly. 

"Sasuke - I didn't - you didn't - That didn't just happen. Did it?" Naruto stammered. 

Sasuke sighed and shook his head. "No Naruto, nothing happened. A hug isn't that big a deal."

Naruto nodded. Sasuke was right. A hug _wasn't _a big deal. He had hugged Iruka tons of times before. 

Of course, in none of those times had he ever felt like this. Naruto felt that Sasuke had belonged in his arms. That he felt perfect there, two pieces of a puzzle. 

He shook his head. "Yeah, you're right."

He seated himself at Sasuke's table. "Are you okay?" he asked finally. 

Sasuke nodded. "I must've had something in my eye," he lied, and Naruto knew it was a lie. 

"I know it's hard to be alone, without parents," Naruto started comfortingly. "It's gotta be harder for you than me, because you knew your parents." 

Sasuke said nothing, and Naruto fell silent for a moment. 

"It was a few minutes later when he continued. "I just want you to know it's okay to cry. I know one of the ninja rules is to never show emotion. I say screw that rule. _My _ninja way says you can cry if you want. Or laugh. Or scream and tear your hair out in frustration." 

Still Sasuke stayed silent, and Naruto was beginning to wonder if Sasuke was ignoring him. 

Finally Sasuke spoke. His voice was calm, completely under control. His own, without any emotion. "You're different than me."

Naruto squinted his eyes, pursed his lips, and tilted his head slightly, unsure of how to take that. 

"Listen, Naruto, if you wanna go, just go," Sasuke offered quietly. 

Naruto shook his head. "Do you want me to go?" he questioned.

Sasuke looked at him, unsure of how to answer. 

If he said "yes," that would just be rude, and then Naruto would have reason to tell everyone about the "Sasuke fountain." Also, he didn't want Naruto to go, as weird as it sounded. They were like light and darkness, and Naruto's brightness seemed to banish some of Sasuke's darkness. It was comforting to have at least someone who could partly understand his pain, more so since that someone seemed so carefree (though the more Sasuke learned, the less carefree Naruto seemed to be).

However, if he said "no," that would just be to weird. It would be like the snake inviting the toad into its home, the two were suppose to be great enemies. Naruto seemed freaked out enough over a simple hug. 

Sasuke was saved from answering when Naruto spoke again. 

"It's hard living alone," Naruto admitted. "But it would probably be easier if you had someone to talk too," Naruto wondered what he was saying, what willed his mouth to move. The words weren't coming out of his mouth because of his conscious mind. 

Finally he regained control of his mouth. "I'm going to go now," Naruto said, pointing at the door. When Sasuke didn't say anything, he got up and headed towards it. 

He paused in the doorway once again, when Sasuke spoke. 

"Naruto?" He called. Naruto turned to him. "If I'm going to talk to you about how I feel," he started, "then you're going to have to talk to me about yours."

Naruto was agreeing before he knew what he was dong, and then retreated into the semi-empty streets. 

  
  
  


Sasuke lay on his couch, attempting to read one of his books on chakra control, but he couldn't concentrate. 

The words, even the letters, seemed to make no sense. 

_What _had he been thinking when he agreed to express his own problems to the fox like boy? Probably the same thing he had been thinking when he volunteered to, in return, listen to the boy's own troubles. Nothing. 

He slammed the book shut. When you had other thing to think about other then how to walk on water, reading about it was not only tedious, but pointless. 

He laid it on the floor and sat up. Training cleared his mind. It was like his security blanket. 

Every year it was his goal to not train on the day of his parents' demise, and every year he failed. 

When he trained, all he thought about was the task at hand, and he often used it as an excuse to relieve his pain. 

Today, he was relieving not only his sorrow, but his confusion. 

  
  


Naruto sighed angrily, and opened his eyes. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor, the backs of his hands resting on his knees. 

Meditation was never his thing, but Sakura-chan said it would help strengthen his chakra control. So he had started. 

Now he could meditate for nearly half an hour, achieving a _very_ momentary.... moment of astro-projection. 

But today, after he had gotten home, he couldn't clear his mind for more then a few seconds. 

Thoughts of Sasuke and how lonesome he must feel causing his fermentation. 

He stood up, deciding he wasn't going to be able to meditate at the moment. 

Besides, he always preferred the physical training opposed to the mental crap. 

He walked out of his house, headed for the training grounds Team 7 had claimed for themselves. 

  


~~~~~~~~~~~

Kaira-chan: Sorry the chapters so...semi-short ^_^;;

Dark Kaira: ... =.=.... 

Naruto: Please review!!

  


~~~~REVIEW REPLIES~~~~~~~

Inuyasha's Kitty:

Lol, wasn't it though?? ^_^ I'll put more ^_^ no worries!!

  


Akiko:

I suppose I won't =P

  


:D:

No...I suppose it's not over **Sighs** ^_^ oh well. 

  


Pinky-cat:

I'm glad you like it ^_^ And I will, no worries. 

  


Zephyr Wind ((To review on ch3))

Yay ^_^

  


Zephyr Wind ((To review on ch. 4))

Yay ^_^ ... again ^_^

  


Kitty-chan, UchiNaru no Miko:

I will ^_^;;

  


Nikkler:

Yay ^_^ And I am.... I'll think about the whole party deal ^_^ It would get the villagers to accept Naruto... or not love Sasuke anymore... *Shrugs*


	5. Chappy 5

Kaira-chan: Sorry for the long update . I've had this written out for the past 4 days, but I haven't been able to go on the computer long enough to type it out *sighs*

Dark Kaira: Why are you apologizing for that. If anything you should apologize for cursing everyone with another chapter. 

Kaira-chan: Bleh XP you're right...

Naruto: *Blinks* I'm going to stay out of this. If Kaira-chan owned Naruto, she wouldn't be writing it on a FAN fiction site. 

~~~~~~~~~~

  


Naruto paused when he reached the edge of Team Sevens training grounds. 

He was hoping that he was going to be the only one there that day. It turned out that that was too much to hope for. In the middle of the clearing, punching and kicking away at the post in the ground was Sasuke. 

He pursed his lips together. 

He could just go and train. That's what he would normally do. Normally he'd ignore Sasuke, or challenge him, or something. 

But this wasn't normally, now was it? This was different. Today four years ago, Sasuke's parents had been killed. Today, Sasuke probably wanted to be alone. Okay, so Sasuke wanted to be alone everyday. But today, he probably wanted to be alone more so. 

Besides, Naruto_ knew _he was annoying. Usually he didn't care. But every now and then he knew that the thing people needed least was someone like him. That was one of the reasons he never even so much as rolled out of bed on his birthday...

That, and he still was trying to understand this new relationship between them. And trying to forget this new feeling that was developing for the other boy. 

But~, he really was itching to train. If he just trained, and ignored Sasuke, it should be okay, right? If Sasuke felt like speaking to Naruto about anything, he would, right?

Naruto stepped into the clearing, portending not to notice how Sasuke's training seemed to slow and loose focus a little when Naruto entered his line of vision. 

Naruto soon began to focus upon doing some handstand push-ups, leaning against a post. He still wasn't strong or balanced enough to do them freestanding. Sasuke's rhythm to his training began to speed up and become normal once again. 

The two fo them continued training until the sun began disappearing behind the heads of th former and present Hokage a few hours later, seemingly oblivious to the other's presence. 

"Hey, Naruto," Sasuke called up to his teammate. 

Naruto nearly feel flat on his face from his position of hanging upside-down in a tree. 

It wasn't completely the fault of the fact that neither had spoken to each other the duration of the time that they had trained. Actually, it had more to do with the fact that Sasuke had left out the familiar nickname of "dobe".

Naruto let the chakra drain from his feet, and flipped onto the ground, trying to ignore the nausea that having all the blood rushing to or from your head when you're upside-down provoked. "Yeah?"

"We've been training nearly all day. Wanna grab a bite to eat?" Sasuke asked casually if not coldly. 

Naruto somehow resisted the compulsive urge to rip of Sasuke's mask and find out who was pretending his usual indifferent rival. 

"Like where?" he asked instead. 

"Where ever. The Ichiraku sounds like an idea," Sasuke shrugged, seemingly indifferent.

"Ramen?" Naruto asked cautiously. 

"For you, if you want. I'm personally thinking of getting some rice balls."

Naruto grinned widely. "Then onward we go!" he exclaimed. 

  
  


Sasuke smiled softly as Naruto loudly slurped his ramen. 

Sasuke took a bite from his rice ball, not taking his eyes from Naruto. 

It was strange, really. He had seen Naruto just the night before. But he was a completely different person no then he had been that night. 

Naruto, then, had been closer personality wise to Sasuke the nearly everyone Sasuke had met, now he was further than anyone. 

Sasuke wondered which was the _real _Naruto. The determined, seemingly carefree one, or the brooding, seemingly deep-thinking one?

~~~~~~~~~

Sorry it's so short T^T I didn't have time to write a longer chapter. And December has sucked all the creativity from me

Naruto: So please review!!

  


~~~REVIEW REPLIES~~~

Chibi Dragon:

Wow -.-; wasn't this updated soon ^-^ lol. I'm glad you're not so disappointed with Behind the Smile now. I _do _plan to write a sequel... really I do...

  


Firedragon97:

Hmm... I suppose I could try to get an angst pile up XD *grins stupidly*


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